It’s here. The Cave Update, with a side of cliffs. That’s right, The Caves & Cliffs Update: Part I is launching today!
Now you can finally swim with the glow squid, fight alongside the axolotls, and get rammed off a mountain by a goat. You can also build with new blocks like copper, pointed dripstone, and moss, hang some hanging roots and cave vines, and marvel at the new ore textures. Light up your homes, caves, mineshaft and lives with the glow berry. Build a spyglass and peep your next adventure or just keep track of what that creeper over yonder is doing. Wait, what is it doing? Is it getting closer, or is this spyglass just really good?
Have fun with Part I!
Features
Added Dripstone Blocks and Pointed Dripstone
Added Block of Amethyst, Budding Amethyst, Amethyst Cluster, and Amethyst Bud
Added Block of Raw Iron, Copper, and Gold
Added Candles
Added Copper
Added Deepslate
Added Glow Lichen
Added Lava Cauldrons
Added Lightning Rod
Added Lush Caves blocks
Added Powder Snow
Added Raw Copper, Raw Iron, and Raw Gold items
Added the Axolotl
Added the Glow Squid
Added the Goat
Added Spyglass
Added Tinted Glass
A Shulker hitting a Shulker with a Shulker Bullet can make a new Shulker
Additions to Wandering Trader and Mason trades
Bundles and Shulker Box items will drop their contents when destroyed
Changed Infested Block destroy times
Changes to the Shipwreck and Mineshaft loot
Dirt Paths (formerly Grass Path) can now be made by using a Shovel on Dirt, Podzol, Mycelium, or Coarse Dirt (as well as Grass)
Drowned now has a chance of dropping a Copper Ingot, and they no longer drop Gold Ingots
Experience Orbs now sometimes merge when in large quantities to improve performance. This does not change the rate at which the player can absorb them, it simply limits the amount of separate orbs floating around in the world. Orbs that merge will gain the lifetime of the most recently created one.
Holding down the space bar now increases the scroll speed in the credits
Minecarts and Rails work in water
Particles now appear when Pistons break blocks
Reordered some blocks in the Building Blocks Tab in the Creative Menu
Reordered the Redstone Tab in the Creative Menu
Simple Firework Rockets with one Gunpowder can now be crafted using the recipe book
Accessibility
Added an alternative solid black background color for the Mojang Studios loading screen, toggleable with the "Monochrome Logo" accessibility option
Advancements
Added "Whatever Floats Your Goat!" for floating in a boat with a Goat
Added "Wax on" for applying Honeycomb to a Copper block
Added "Wax off" for scraping wax off a Copper block
Added "The Cutest Predator" for catching an Axolotl in a Bucket
Added "The Healing Power of Friendship!" for teaming up with an Axolotl and winning a fight
Added "Glow and Behold" for making a Sign glow
Added "Light as a Rabbit" for walking on Powder Snow with Leather Boots
Added "Surge Protector!" for having a lightning strike a Lightning Rod near a Villager without setting the area on fire
Added "Is It a Bird?" for looking at a Parrot through a Spyglass
Added "Is It a Balloon?" for looking at a Ghast through a Spyglass
Added "Is It a Plane?" for looking at the Ender Dragon through a Spyglass
Amethyst Blocks
Amethyst comes in block form inside the Geodes in two ways: Block of Amethyst and Budding Amethyst
All types of Amethyst blocks (Clusters included) create beautiful sounds when you walk on them, break them, place them, or hit them with a projectile – go make some music!
Amethyst Clusters
Amethyst Clusters grow from Budding Amethyst, which can be found inside Amethyst Geodes
Clusters have four growth stages: Small Amethyst Bud, Medium Amethyst Bud, Large Amethyst Bud, and Amethyst Cluster
Clusters can only grow when they are placed on Budding Amethyst blocks
Fully-grown Amethyst Clusters drop four Amethyst Shards (or more with Fortune) when mined with a Pickaxe, and drop two Amethyst Shards when broken by hand, Piston, or other means
Clusters can be Silk Touched at any stage
Amethyst Geodes
These huge geodes can be found anywhere underground in the Overworld
Amethyst Geodes have an outer layer of a new stone called Smooth Basalt
Amethyst Geodes have a second layer of another new block called Calcite
Amethyst Geodes have an inner layer of various Amethyst blocks
Amethyst Shards
Amethyst Clusters drop two Amethyst Shards when broken by hand, Piston, or other means" to the
Amethyst Clusters drop four Amethyst Shards when mined with a Pickaxe (or more with Fortune)
Axolotl
Amphibious!
Axolotls spawn in underground water that is in total darkness with Stone, Granite, Diorite, Andesite, Tuff, or Deepslate below
Axolotls love tropical fish! Bucket of Tropical Fish can be used to breed Axolotls
Axolotls will swim around with you if you're holding a Bucket of Tropical Fish in either hand
When a player kills a mob that the Axolotl was attacking or being attacked by, the Axolotl will show its appreciation by granting the player temporary Regeneration and removing any Mining Fatigue effects
If the player has more than two minutes of Regeneration effect left already, the axolotl will not grant additional Regeneration
You can pick up your Axolotl in a Water Bucket and carry it around just like a Salmon or a Cod
Axolotls will always chase after and attack Squids, Glow Squids, Tropical Fish, Cod, Salmon, Pufferfish, Drowned, Guardians, and Elder Guardians
Axolotls do not like being out of water, and will dry up and begin taking damage if they are out of water for longer than five minutes
An Axolotl will not dry up as long as they are in water or rain
Sometimes when an Axolotl takes damage while inside water, it will pretend to be dead so that it stops being attacked
There are four common varieties and one rare variety (blue) of Axolotl
Axolotls spawn in underground water sources that are in total darkness and above natural stone blocks
Axolotls now have a two-minute cooldown after hunting non-hostile targets: Squids, Glow Squids, Tropical Fish, Cod, Salmon, and Pufferfish
They will prioritize targeting hostile mobs over hunting
Bone Meal
A crinkly, crunchy sound plays when Bone Meal is used
Budding Amethyst
On any side of a Budding Amethyst block where there is air or a water source block, a Small Amethyst Bud will eventually grow
Amethyst Buds can only grow when attached to Budding Amethyst, and will grow until they become Amethyst Clusters
Building Blocks Tab
All ores have been reordered to be in the same location in the creative inventory
Compact forms of raw and refined underground materials have been reordered
Candles
Candles come in all sixteen colors and one uncolored variant
Up to four Candles can be placed in one block
Waterloggable! (But you cannot light them underwater, silly)
Wish anybody a happy birthday with a Cake with a Candle!
Candles can only be placed if there is a solid surface below but will remain even if the surface below is removed
Cauldrons
Cauldrons can now be filled with Lava and Powder Snow Buckets!
Cauldrons filled with lava give off a Redstone signal with Strength 3 when used with a comparator
Copper blocks
Craft nine Copper Ingots into a Copper Block
Craft Cut Copper, Cut Copper Stairs, and Cut Copper Slabs
The Stonecutter can be used to craft the different Copper Block variants
Use Honeycomb to craft Waxed Copper Blocks
Right-click with Honeycomb on Copper Blocks to wax them
Use Honeycomb in a Dispenser to wax Copper Blocks
Copper Ore
Copper Ore can be found in ore blobs across the Overworld, similar to Iron and Coal (this is not the final generation for Copper...)
Smelt Copper Ore to get a Copper Ingot
Copper Ore drops 2-3 Raw Copper
Deepslate
Deepslate can be found in the deepest parts of the underground, and is slightly tougher to mine than normal Stone
Deepslate will drop Cobbled Deepslate, similar to how Stone drops Cobblestone
You can still obtain Deepslate with Silk Touch
Like Cobblestone, Cobbled Deepslate can be used to craft basic tools, Furnaces, and Brewing Stands
You can also craft the following blocks with Deepslate:
Cobbled Deepslate Slab
Cobbled Deepslate Stairs
Cobbled Deepslate Wall
Polished Deepslate
Polished Deepslate Slab
Polished Deepslate Stairs
Polished Deepslate Wall
Deepslate Bricks
Deepslate Brick Slab
Deepslate Brick Stairs
Deepslate Brick Wall
Deepslate Tiles
Deepslate Tile Slab
Deepslate Tile Stairs
Deepslate Tile Wall
Chiseled Deepslate
Cracked Deepslate Bricks
Cracked Deepslate Tiles
There is also an Infested variant of Deepslate found in the underground
Cobbled Deepslate can be smelted into Deepslate
Deepslate Ores
Added Deepslate versions of Iron, Gold, Lapis, Redstone, and Diamond Ores that generate wherever those ores replace Deepslate
Twice as tough to mine as normal ores
While they will not generate underground, Deepslate versions of Copper, Emerald and Coal Ores have been added for map makers and data packs
Dripstone Block
Decorative block
Can be crafted with four Pointed Dripstone
Pointed Dripstone
Forms a stalactite if placed on the ceiling or a stalagmite if placed on the floor
Can be combined to form longer stalactites & stalagmites
Stalactites and stalagmites merge if the tips are next to each other, unless you press shift while placing
Stalagmites will break if they're not attached to something below
Landing or jumping on a stalagmite hurts, and they are sharp!
Stalactites fall down if not attached to something above
Being hit by a falling stalactite hurts, and they are sharp!
Stalactites drip water (or lava if there is lava above the ceiling)
A stalactite with a water source above the ceiling will gradually fill a cauldron below with water
A stalactite with a lava source above the ceiling will fill a cauldron below with lava after a while
Thrown Tridents break Pointed Dripstone
Dripstone growth
If a stalactite is hanging from a Dripstone Block with a water source above, it will slowly grow both the stalactite from above and a stalagmite from below
Growth speed is random but very slow, a single growth step can take several Minecraft days
A stalactite will only grow up to seven blocks long
A stalactite will only cause stalagmite growth if the floor or stalagmite below is within ten blocks
If the stalactite tip is inside water it won't drip, and therefore won't trigger any growth
If the stalagmite tip is inside water it won't receive drops, and therefore won't be grown by a dripping stalactite. Same thing if there is any fluid between the two tips
A stalagmite or stalactite will never grow into a fluid
Glow Lichen
A dim light source that generates in caves
Use Shears to pick it up
Use Bone Meal to spread it along block surfaces
Glow Squid
Glow Squids are well-lit and can be seen from far distances!
When killed, Glow Squids drop Glow Ink Sacs
Glow Ink Sacs can be used on Signs to make the text super visible, even at night. Works with colors!
Craft a Glow Item Frame by combining a Glow Ink Sac with an Item Frame in a Crafting Table. Any item in a Glow Item Frame is perfectly illuminated, even at night.
Use an Ink Sac on a Sign to remove the glow effect
Axolotls will attack any Glow Squids they see, so... be careful
Glow Squids spawn in underground water that is in total darkness with Stone, Granite, Diorite, Andesite, Tuff, or Deepslate below
Goat
Goats spawns in mountains
Goats can scale the sides of mountains with their incredible jumps
Goats can be tempted and bred using Wheat
Goats are another source of Milk!
Goats will ram anything that moves... also Armor Stands
Two in every 100 goats have something very loud to tell you!
Goats will avoid walking on Powder Snow
Screaming Goats will use their ram attack more often than other Goats will
Mobs rammed by Goats do not retaliate
Infested Blocks
Infested Blocks are no longer instantly destroyed, and instead, have half the destroy time of their non-infested counterpart
Lightning Rod
A Lightning Rod is crafted from three Copper Ingots
Keeps your builds safe (well, as long as the closest area around the Lightning Rod is fireproof) during thunderstorms!
The Lightning Rod will protect an area of 8 * 16 blocks around it from the, sometimes devastating, lightning strikes!
Lightning Rods give off a Redstone signal when struck by lightning
Lush Caves blocks
Added Moss
Added Dripleaves
Added Rooted Dirt and Hanging Roots
Added Spore Blossoms (currently only available in the Creative inventory)
Added Cave Vines and Glow Berries
Added Azalea Bushes
Azalea Bushes
Added Azalea Bushes as well as Flowering Azaela Bushes
Bees see Flowering Azalea (and Flowering Azalea Leaves) as flowers
Bonemeal Azalea or Flowering Azalea to get an Azalea Tree
Cave Vines and Glow Berries
Cave Vines grow down from the ceiling, like Weeping Vines
When they grow they have a chance of producing Glow Berries
Glow Berries are a natural light source as well as a food source
Foxes eat Glow Berries
Use Glow Berries to plant new Cave Vines
Bonemealing a Cave Vine will create Glow Berries
Drip Leaves
Small Dripleaf needs moisture, so it grows on Clay or underwater
The facing direction of Small Dripleaf blocks is determined by which direction the player is facing when placing it
The Wandering Trader will sometimes sell Small Dripleaf plants
Small Dripleaf grows into Big Dripleaf when bonemealed
Big Dripleaf grows taller when bonemealed
If you stand on a Big Dripleaf, it will tilt after a while, and you will fall off
A tilted Big Dripleaf will tilt up again after a while
A Big Dripleaf will tilt when hit by a projectile
A Redstone powered Big Dripleaf will not tilt (except when hit by a projectile)
Moss
Two new decorative blocks: Moss Block and Moss Carpet
Moss Carpet can be crafted from Moss Blocks
Moss Blocks can be crafted with Cobblestone or Stone Bricks to make the mossy versions of those blocks
Roots
Added Rooted Dirt and Hanging Roots – decorative blocks that will appear in the upcoming Lush Caves biome
Tilling Rooted Dirt with a Hoe will convert it into Dirt, and pop out a Hanging Roots item
Spore Blossoms
A beautiful large flower placed on ceilings
Particles drip from it and will appear in the air around it
Minecarts and Rails work in water
All Rails can be waterlogged (works with a Dispenser & Water Bucket too)
Flowing water doesn't break Rails
Minecarts can pass through water, but get slowed down more than usual
Oxidation
Copper will oxidize over time
There are four stages: Copper, Exposed Copper, Weathered Copper, and Oxidized Copper
It takes 50-82 Minecraft days (in loaded chunks) for a Copper Block to oxidize one stage
Waxed Copper Blocks will not oxidize
You can wax any oxidation stage - keep that pretty Weathered Copper Block in its weathered stage forever!
A lightning strike hitting Copper will clean its oxidation
Waxed Copper Blocks can be crafted into nine Copper Ingots
Axes can scrape off wax and oxidation from Copper Blocks
Powder Snow
Snowier snow!
Powder Snow is a trap block that causes any entity that walks into it to sink in it
You can pick up and place Powder Snow with a Bucket
Wear Leather Boots to prevent yourself from sinking into Powder Snow blocks
Leave a Cauldron outside in falling snow and it will fill with Powder Snow
Entities on fire now get extinguished when they collide with Powder Snow. The Powder Snow block is also destroyed
Skeletons convert to Strays when frozen
Powder Snow is pushable by Pistons and Sticky Pistons
Rabbits, Endermites, Silverfish, and Foxes can walk on top of Powder Snow without falling in
Freezing
Standing in Powder Snow will slowly freeze an entity
Once frozen, freeze damage is done every few seconds to the frozen entity
Wearing any piece of Leather Armor prevents freezing entirely
Added a freezeDamage game rule that allows players to toggle whether Powder Snow causes freeze damage or not
Strays, Polar Bears, and Snow Golems are immune to freezing
Mobs that are fully frozen will shake
Mobs that enjoy the heat (Blazes, Magma Cubes, and Striders) take increased freeze damage
Redstone Tab
The Redstone Tab has been reordered to prioritize highly-used blocks
Redstone items/blocks have been grouped and ordered in the following way:
Essentials
Unique activators
Miscellaneous
Common activators
Openables
Slime Blocks and Honey Blocks have been moved to the Redstone tab
Smeltable Ore Drops
Ores that are smeltable now drop raw item forms of the ore instead of the ore block, and these can be smelted just like before
This is to prevent cluttering the inventory and have consistency with Fortune on all ores
Just like other ore materials, you can craft a compact version with raw ore items in order to save inventory space
Smooth Basalt
Smelt Basalt to obtain Smooth Basalt
Spyglass
You can use a Spyglass to see faraway things
Pretend to be a sea captain, or catch your neighbor in the act as they dye your Sheep lime green!
The Spyglass is crafted from two Copper Ingots and one Amethyst Shard
Tinted Glass
Tinted Glass is a type of glass that does not allow light to pass through
Tinted Glass is crafted by putting a Glass Block in the middle of four Amethyst Shards
Tinted Glass can be obtained without Silk Touch; it does not shatter like normal glass
Trade & Loot Table Additions
Added the following trades to Mason:
Will sell four Dripstone Blocks for one Emerald
Added the following trades to Wandering Trader:
Will sell two Pointed Dripstones for one Emerald
Will sell two Rooted Dirt for one Emerald
Will sell two Moss Blocks for one Emerald
Moss Blocks can be found in Shipwreck Chests
Glow Berries can be found in Mineshaft Chest Minecarts
Tuff
A new type of stone that can be found in blobs between y0 and y16
Underground structure changes
Strongholds are mostly encased in Stone
Mineshaft corridors are supported by log pillars below or Chains above when needed
Cobwebs don't generate fully floating in the air
Visuals
Sky color now varies smoothly when moving between different biomes
Ores without unique shapes have been given new textures for accessibility reasons, so that each ore is distinguishable by shape alone
Emerald Ore and Lapis Ore have had some small touch-ups
Being the most iconic ore, Diamond Ore texture is staying the same to keep that classic feel maintained
Blackstone, Polished Blackstone Bricks, and Cracked Polished Blackstone Bricks have had some minor touch-ups
Clock and Compass textures have been updated
World generation
Dripstone clusters can be found rarely in normal caves
Deepslate blobs can be found from Y0 to y16
Technical
Added /debug function
Added /item command
Added lightning_bolt sub-predicate
Added looking_at condition to player sub-predicate
Added passenger, stepping_on and lightning_bolt properties to entity predicate
Added source condition to effects_changed trigger
Added started_riding, lightning_strike and using_item advancement triggers
Added a metric cube of light!
Added a new NBT tag for entities, named "HasVisualFire", which will cause any entity with this flag to visually appear on fire, even if they are not actually on fire
Added F3+L shortcut to generate and persist performance metrics from in-game
F3+L on single-player worlds will also include reports for the integrated server
Added gamerule playersSleepingPercentage (100 by default), which sets what percentage of players that must sleep in order to skip the night. Setting it to 0 will mean one player is always enough to skip the night. Setting it above 100 will prevent skipping the night.
Added item modifiers, which will reuse loot table functions syntax to describe item modification in /item command
Added loot table function set_banner_pattern
Added the Marker entity
Buttons that change value (like Difficulty) can now be controlled with the mouse wheel
Clicking on a button that changes the value while holding the shift key changes to the previous value
Data pack version is now 7
"Debug" world type can now be accessed while holding the alt key (was shift)
Entities are now saved separately from terrain chunks
Expanded block field on block predicate to blocks
Expanded item field on item predicate to items
GUI narration now includes position and usage of hovered or focused elements
Loot tables can now access scoreboard values by UUID
OpenGL 3.2 core profile
Perf start/stop command on dedicated servers will now generate and persist server performance metrics
Removed /replaceitem
Removed debug report command (use perf start/stop for server performance measurement)
selector and nbt chat components can now configure separators between elements
Servers can also display a custom message on resource pack prompt
Servers can now require custom resource packs to be accepted
The '/give' command can only give up to 100 stacks of items at a time (e.g. 6400 stone or 100 iron swords)
The default mode of structure blocks is now Load. Data is now hidden (but can be accessed by clicking the mode button while holding the alt key)
The maximum length of item names in the Anvil UI has been increased from 35 to 50
The maximum size that Slimes can be summoned with is now 128
The pack format in version.json has been split into data and resource versions
The Resource pack version is now 7
Upgraded to Java 16
Values inside random number generators can now be nested
/debug function
New debug subcommand executes a command with the same syntax as function
Every executed command, message (even if it would be normally invisible), result, or error is stored to file
Advancements
Changed predicates
Block predicate
block field expended to blocks, which now accepts an array of block types
Entity predicate
passenger - a new sub-predicate for a passenger that is directly riding this vehicle (if present, must match one or more)
stepping_on - a location predicate for a block that an entity is currently standing on
lightning_bolt - a sub-predicate that is valid only for a lightning bolt entity
Item predicate
item field expended to items, which now accepts an array of item types
Player predicate
looking_at - an entity that is currently viewed by a player
uses same the line-of-sight rules as attacking mobs
actual detection radius might be changed in future
Changed triggers
effects_changed
Added source triggers that match an entity that triggered the change
Might be empty when:
there is no entity (for example, effect gained from a Beacon)
the effect is self-applied
an effect is removed
Lightning Bolt
blocks_set_on_fire - a range check for blocks set on fire by this entity
entity_struck - a predicate for entities struck by this lightning bolt (if present, must match one or more)
New triggers
lightning_strike
Triggered when a lightning strike finishes (i.e. entity disappears)
Triggers for any player within a certain radius of a lightning strike
Conditions
player - a player for which this trigger runs
lightning -a predicate for a lightning entity
bystander - a predicate for one of the entities in a certain area around a strike that is not hurt by it
started_riding
Triggered when a player starts riding a vehicle or an entity starts riding a vehicle currently ridden by a player
Conditions:
player - either a player that has started riding or one of the boat passengers
using_item
Triggered for every tick of using items (like Crossbows and Spyglasses)
Conditions
player - a player that uses an item
item - an item being used
Chat component separators
Added occludes_vibration_signals block tag. Anything in this tag will occlude vibrations, and inherits wool tag entries by default
Components that prints lists of names, like selector or nbt can now override separator (, by default) with separator element
Modifies the item or block inventory.
This command has three forms:
Possible sources and targets:
For example, /item replace block ~ ~ ~ container.0 from entity @s enderchest.0 will copy the first item from the player's Ender Chest to the first slot of a container that the player is currently standing on.
/item replace <target> with <item stack> [<count>] - the same as old replaceitem
/item replace <target> from <source> [<modifier>] - copies an item for source to target(s), optionally applying a modifier
/item modify <target> <modifier> - modifies an item (without copying)
entity <selector> <slot>
block <x> <y> <z> <slot>
Custom server resource packs
A dedicated server can enforce custom resource packs by setting require-resource-pack in server.properties
When this option is used, players will be prompted for a response and will be disconnected if they decline the required pack
If user has a setting to automatically decline packs, the prompt will still be shown (since the alternative would be automatic disconnection)
A dedicated server can also configure an additional message to be shown on the resource pack prompt (resource-pack-prompt in server.properties, expects chat component syntax, can contain multiple lines)
This message won't be shown if user has already declined pack and it's not required
Customized worlds
World height related values are now exposed for customized worlds
Data Packs
Changes to data packs for version 7:
Removal of /replaceitem (replaced with /item replace)
Entity storage
Entities have been extracted from main (terrain) chunks and are now stored in a separate entities directory (similar to POI storage)
Those new files are still region files with NBT
Item modifiers
The function part of loot tables can now be defined as a separate data pack resource in the item_modifiers directory
This type of file can contain a single function (i.e single JSON object) or an array of functions
Java 16
Minecraft now uses a more recent version of Java. If you are using a default setup, the Launcher will download and install the correct version. If you are using a custom Java setup, or a third-party launcher, you will need to ensure that your Java installation is version 16 or above.
Light block
Op-only (/give), air-like, waterloggable block
Emits light at a level that is determined by block state
Visible and targetable only when an item is held (similar to Barrier Blocks)
Right click cycles the light level
Loot tables
Changed conditions
Changed functions
copy_nbt
source parameter can now accept an object with type and additional parameters
The old syntax of just writing "target" is present and equivalent to {"type": "context", "target": "<target>"}
New storage provider (example: {"type": "storage", <namespaced id>}) can be used to access command storage
set_count
This function now has add parameter. If true, the change will be relative to the current item count. If false, item count will be replaced with current value (default behavior)
set_damage
This function now has an add parameter. If true, the change will be relative to the current damage. If false, the damage will be replaced with the current value (default behavior)
New conditions
value_check
Checks range of value.
Parameters:
value - see "New value providers" section (currently a combination of random generators and score)
range - min/max range
New functions
set_banner_pattern
Sets tags needed for banner patterns.
Parameters:
patterns - list of pattern objects:
pattern - the name of the pattern (square_bottom_left, bricks, etc.)
color - the name of the color (light_gray, etc.)
append - if true, the new elements will be appended to the existing ones instead of replacing them
set_enchantments
Modifies enchantments on an item.
Parameters
enchantments - map of enchantment id to level value (can be a score or a random number)
add - if true, the change will be relative to the current level. If false, the level will be replaced with the current value (default behavior)
New value providers
Note: value providers can be used in same places as random number generators.
score
Returns scaled scoreboard value.
Parameters
score - scoreboard name
target - see below
scale - scaling factor (float)
Scoreboard provider targets
<target> or {"type": "context", "target": <target>} where <target> can be one of this, killer, direct_killer, killer_player (not all may be available depending on context)
{"type": "fixed", "name": "<scoreboard name>"} for fixed scoreboard name (may be fake player)
Markers
Markers are a new type of entity that is meant for custom use cases like map-making and data packs.
Only exist on the server-side, and are never sent to clients
They do not do any updates of their own
They have a data compound field that can contain any data
OpenGL
Rendering is now using OpenGL 3.2 core profile. All fixed-function rendering has been replaced with shader-based rendering.
Shaders
Shaders are now included for all supported render states. Any shader, except for the blit shader, can also be replaced in resource packs. For now, replacing these shaders is not officially supported, and the way it works may change in the future.
The current rendering engine uses a system similar to the post-processing shader pipeline. There are some differences between both systems that cater to the slightly different requirements.
Particles
Added new particle types called vibration and dust_color_transition
Performance metrics reporting
These will be saved to a zip file in debug/profiling/<yyyy-MM-dd_HH.mm.ss-[levelname]-[version]>.zip and could be used for performance regression analysis if included in bug reports.
The exact metrics, output format, and names are susceptible to change between versions. Our plan is to continue iterating on which metrics to capture.
Client F3+L shortcut
Pressing F3+L while in the game will start a recording for 10 seconds, which captures metrics such as tick durations, used heap sizes, and other more detailed stats.
Pressing F3+L before the 10-second limit will end the recording early.
This shortcut is always available to clients, even on multi-player servers where it will record client-side performance.
Dedicated Server perf start/stop command
perf start will start a recording for 10 seconds, which captures metrics such as tick durations, used heap sizes, and other more detailed stats.
perf stop before the 10-second limit will end the recording early.
Resource Packs
Changes to resource packs for version 7:
Drowned texture mirroring has changed (see MC-174685)
The slots for the Game Mode Selector are now 26 pixels instead of 25
Server properties
Removed max-build-height
Statistics
The statistic for play time has been renamed to play_time
There is now a statistic for "Time with World Open" (total_world_time) that also includes time when the game was paused